I can’t get tired of the pictures I made at the US road trip I did this year. One of the most amazing, out-of-this-world and boiling hot places I visited this Summer was Death Valley. I’ve never seen anything like and I’ve never felt more like melting at the same time. For those who don’t know Death Valley, it’s the hottest place in North-America and is located in California, not far away from the Nevada boarder.
Death Valley is known as a national park, which means it’s not just any desert, it’s a gigantic desert that covers 3000 square miles of the state of California. It’s one of the best geological examples of a basin and range configuration and the valley also contains salt pans. This all in an extremely hot subtropical desert climate.
As you might have read above, Death Valley is big and visiting everything during a road trip is practically impossible. Also, it would be completely unbearable because during our July visit, temperatures were up to 52 degrees celcius. Anyways, we drove to Death Valley from Las Vegas. We first hit Zabrinski Point and Artist’s Drive, before heading to the Devil’s Golf Course Dante’s View, the Natural Bridge and Badwater, the lowest point of the National Park with 855 m below sea level.
We wanted to explore more of the park, yet, due to the heath, our car would not have made it, so we decided to search for cooler places. If you ever decide to take the same trip, don’t forget that air conditioning needs to be put out because it might cause your car engine to fail. Furthermore, drink at least 4 liters of water during the trip because the hot and salty climate really dehydrates you. I would not recommend hiking during the hot summer months (although an ultra trail run is organized mid-July), because it might end with a hospital visit. However, do not let that scare you away. Death Valley definitely is a must-visit when being in California.
Snapshots & Postcards 